CORNERFLICK
Carrick faces the harshest scrutiny
After seven rounds of the 2026-27 Premier League season, Michael Carrick looks the likeliest first managerial casualty. Manchester United sit 13th with one win, four draws and two defeats, and their six-game winless run has done little to ease the pressure.
A draw with Leeds showed some improvement, but it did not change the wider picture. Gary Neville warned on Sky Sports that Carrick’s position would come under severe threat if United were still in mid-table or lower by January, and the club’s poor start has sharpened the scrutiny around Old Trafford.
Palace and Fulham are also in the frame
Pierre Sage arrived at Crystal Palace in summer 2026 after success at Lens, but his side are 14th on seven points and have conceded 17 goals, the worst defensive record in the division. The heavy defeat by Brighton prompted Sage to apologise and say he felt “shame”, while he also said he did not know whether he would be given time to put things right.
Álvaro Arbeloa has had a different route. Fulham ended a six-match winless run with a 17 October win over Hull City, their first Premier League victory of the season, which lifted them to 18th on five points. That result gave him some breathing space, even if the underlying numbers remain poor ahead of the Coventry fixture.